Need + Prepositional Adverb in the Midland

Abstract

The status of the U.S. Midland as a separate dialect area has been a topic of discussion for quite some time, and Murray and Simon (2006b) strive for resolution by defining the Midland as a dialect area characterized by a core set of seventeen morpho-syntactic features that co-occur in the region but are not necessarily used by all or only Midlanders. In this article, the author argues that need + prepositional adverb (e.g., The dog needs out) belongs among the features of the Midland and presents data to show that this construction parallels the regional, social, and stylistic distributions of other Midland constructions. In addition, the author proposes that need + prepositional adverb has indirect links to Scotch-Irish English and is likely a U.S. or, at the very least, a recent innovation that arose by analogy to other Scotch-Irish features. Finally, need + prepositional adverb is a modern Midland feature that provides evidence against the Midland as simply a transition zone.